Life Is Like…

I was pleasantly surprised to see listed "Victoria's Chocolate" among the Christmas gifts given to troops in various wars [News, December]. The tin from my grandfather has been passed down through the family. Inside the tin Corporal Louis Squire kept his discharge papers. He served with the Leinster Regiment, Royal Field Artillery, in the Boer War, during which he was wounded. The tin is inscribed, I wish you a Happy New Year. Victoria.

Gloria Squire Malmud
North Arlington, N.J.

Au Contraire

I was disappointed in John Farr's article ["Napoleonic Action," December] on the 10 top war movies of the Napoleonic era.

A Tale of Two Cities (1935) is a truly great movie, but it is not about Napoléon or the wars of that era. Woody Allen's Love and Death (1975) is about the era, but it is a farce not worthy of a history magazine's list. The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982) is not only set in the pre-Napoléon timeframe, but the last-minute rescues of people on the way to the guillotine were extremely implausible. In short, a nice story but it is too historically weak for a history magazine.

I am surprised that some version of War and Peace did not make Farr's list. The 1956 version, staring Audrey Hepburn and Henry Fonda, won three Oscars and several other awards. It is only 208 minutes long, thus under Farr's four-hour time limit. Not as well known, but a collector's item for students of Napoléon's campaigns, is the 1970 Dino De Laurentiis production Waterloo, starring Christopher Plummer as Wellington and Rod Steiger as Napoléon. The battle scenes are some of the best ever filmed. Both these films were more worthy of this list as Napoleonic war movies than some of those selected.

Colonel Arthur Carey
U.S. Army (Ret.)
Jonesboro, Ga.

Vive La 4th!

I enjoyed the article and photographs of the August 1944 Liberation of Paris ["La Libération!" September].

I was surprised that no pictures of the 4th Infantry Division were included. The 1st Battalion, 110th Regiment, of the 28th Division participated in the liberation and the parade, but the 4th Infantry Division took the city. After many weeks of contact with the enemy, the 4th was in no condition to do a parade; therefore, the 28th was called on. For some reason, the 4th Division is rarely mentioned in military history magazines.

Bert C. Nicholson
Danville, Ill.

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